Concord man injured when home catches fire

CONCORD - A Downing Street homeowner was rushed to Concord Hospital after he suffered smoke inhalation and an injured ankle in a fire Monday morning that heavily damaged his residence.

The fire was reported at 11:11 a.m., and when firefighters arrived, flames were coming out the windows and the roof of the house at 23 Downing St.

Fire Chief Dan Andrus said the homeowner, whom he did not identify, said he had hurt his ankle as he fled his burning home.

"He was very cold and very disturbed about his house being on fire," the chief said.

According to the city's assessor database, the home is owned by Ronald K. Paige, who just bought it on May 31 for $114,000. The 1 1/2 story home was built in 1870.

The first report called into the fire department said smoke and fire were showing on the first floor, but in the time it took for firefighters to arrive, the fire had spread throughout and flames were coming out the roof.

Andrus said the single-family residence was heavily damaged. The stairway to the basement was destroyed in the blaze and the first floor was pretty much gutted.

Fire crews had the fire under control in about 45 minutes but remained on scene to check for hot spots.

Fire department marshal Sean Brown was on the scene trying to determine where and how the fire started.